Supremely Double Chocolatey Strawberry Pancakes
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About us and Betty’s 100 Years in History
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About Us
Though she might not look it, Betty Crocker is more than 100 years old. Learn all about Betty’s history — here’s everything you ever wanted to know about America’s First Lady of Food!
About Betty Crocker
For nearly a century, Betty Crocker has been America’s source for modern cooking instruction and trusted recipe development. That rich heritage and culinary knowledge lives on in our commitment to celebrate the Betty in all of us — by sharing our passion for food, valuable test-kitchen wisdom and lifestyle expertise — straight from our kitchen to yours.
How It All Began
Betty’s story began with a promotion run by Gold Medal Flour back in 1921. Home cooks could win a pincushion resembling a flour sack if they correctly completed a jigsaw puzzle of a milling scene. The Washburn Crosby Company, a flour milling concern and largest predecessor of General Mills, Inc., received thousands of responses and a flood of questions about baking. The name Betty Crocker was created to personalize responses to consumer inquires.
The surname Crocker was chosen to honor a popular, recently retired director of the company, William G. Crocker. Betty was chosen simply as a friendly-sounding name. Women employees were invited to submit sample Betty Crocker signatures; the one judged most distinctive is the basis for the one in use today.
1930’s
Following a response to a Gold Medal Flour promotion Betty Crocker was created to give a personal response to an overwhelming number of letters from women requesting cooking advice and it was at this moment when Bisquick biscuits were introduced – A product that could even beat their mother-in-law’s homemade fare and their husbands would never know the difference.
1940’s
By the early 1940s, surveys showed that the name Betty Crocker was known to nine out of ten American homemakers. According to Fortune magazine in April 1945, she was the second best-known woman in America, followed by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Betty Crocker became known as the First Lady of Food and in that position was called upon to help her country.
1950’s
Due to changes in Kitchen technology and the introduction of new appliances, there was a need for new recipes. In response Betty’s First Cookbook was published, now affectionately known as “Big Red”. It was the first cookbook to have “how to” pictures.
The Betty Crocker Red Spoon
Believe it or not, the first food product with the Betty Crocker name was dried soup mix, introduced in 1942. Betty Crocker packaged cake mixes were introduced in 1947 with Ginger Cake, the precursor of today’s Betty Crocker Gingerbread Cake. It was quickly followed by Devil’s Food Cake Mix and Party Cake Mix, which could be made into yellow, white or spice cake by using water plus whole eggs, just the whites or by adding spices along with the eggs.
The surname Crocker was chosen to honor a popular, recently retired director of the company, William G. Crocker. Betty was chosen simply as a friendly-sounding name. Women employees were invited to submit sample Betty Crocker signatures; the one judged most distinctive is the basis for the one in use today.
Following a response to a Gold Medal Flour promotion Betty Crocker was created to give a personal response to an overwhelming number of letters from women requesting cooking advice and it was at this moment when Bisquick biscuits were introduced – A product that could even beat their mother-in-law’s homemade fare and their husbands would never know the difference.
By the early 1940s, surveys showed that the name Betty Crocker was known to nine out of ten American homemakers. According to Fortune magazine in April 1945, she was the second best-known woman in America, followed by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Betty Crocker became known as the First Lady of Food and in that position was called upon to help her country.
Due to changes in Kitchen technology and the introduction of new appliances, there was a need for new recipes. In response Betty’s First Cookbook was published, now affectionately known as “Big Red”. It was the first cookbook to have “how to” pictures.
Believe it or not, the first food product with the Betty Crocker name was dried soup mix, introduced in 1942. Betty Crocker packaged cake mixes were introduced in 1947 with Ginger Cake, the precursor of today’s Betty Crocker Gingerbread Cake. It was quickly followed by Devil’s Food Cake Mix and Party Cake Mix, which could be made into yellow, white or spice cake by using water plus whole eggs, just the whites or by adding spices along with the eggs.
Betty’s trademark Red Spoon began appearing on packaging in 1954. Today, it’s a symbol of the quality associated with Betty Crocker and appears on more than 200 products, including Super Moist Cake Mixes, Cookie Mixes, Brownie Mixes, Frostings.
International Betty Crocker
Betty’s popularity isn’t confined to her “birth” country, the United States. She arrived in Canada in mid-1950s and has swiftly made her way around the world. She enjoys a strong presence in the United Kingdom, Iceland, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Australia and other countries throughout Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Betty’s products are specially adapted for the baking style and culture of each country.
Betty is loved by Bakers since 1921
Whether viewed as an icon of food expertise and reliable products or as a real person, Betty Crocker’s luminous career endures.
Betty today is more than 100 years old and can still be counted on to offer reliable and accessible recipes, baking advice and dependable products to this and future generations of home cooks and bakers. She — or rather, the multi-talented team behind Betty — is still dedicated to working for, “all of you who like to minister to your dear ones by serving them good food,” as she wrote in the preface of the “Betty Crocker Picture Cook Book” in 1950.
